The Victor-Marlayne Giron

The Victor, Marlayne Giron, Tate Publishing, 2009, 272 pages.

A King, Eloth, has been betrayed. His steward, Lucius, has turned against Him, and along with some of His subjects has attempted to steal His powerful sword, Ephlal. When his plan fails, Lucius is banished to whatever land lay beyond the sea surrounding Ellioth.

            Years later, Eloth begins to send some of His rapidly expanding kingdom to the newly discovered land Shiloh. His adopted son Ardon leads the first move. When they arrive, a band of wearied and starved men beg for shelter. Soon, they are regarded as closely as family. Their leader, Lucan, begins to poison the mind of Ardon’s wife, Zarabeth. She manages to persuade Ardon to destroy his loyalty to the King.

            Lucan begins to persecute the inhabitants of Shiloh, and the villagers start blaming Eloth himself. Word of this gets back to Ellioth, and the King and His Son, Joshua, plan to retake Shiloh. “The Victor will always be known in the end.”

My thoughts: “An icy wind streamed over the hilltop from the nearby sea, chilling the sentries who stood watch from high atop the castle’s battlements.” What a great first sentence to begin the story with! It brings you into the scene quickly and with intrigue. It transports you to the medieval world and all its dangers. You know something is about to happen. This is reflected often throughout the book: Giron gets to the point quickly and frequently uses very good adjectives. The characters are very vivid and likable and the plot was great!

            Speaking of plot, this resonated well like an allegory. It had the fall of “Satan,” the “creation” of a new realm, the fall of “Adam and Eve,” and the redemption of The Victor’s people! I love how all of these key players came together with their beauties and faults.  Except for two: The Victor and His Father. I must admit I have a sweet tooth for allegories, and though this wasn’t the best representation I’ve read, I enjoyed it greatly! The romance factor was on a bearable level. The violence was a little stronger than I expected though, but for me wasn’t too much. It may catch others by surprise, so let that serve as a warning. All in all, this was a nice “realistic allegorical” fiction that I enjoyed!